Running with the Ravens
by fulloffandoms
Summary: "Imagine a world where if you break a rule, you wake up the next day with a broken leg. That world you're imagining? We're living in it. The Black Ravens are like the Patriots up against Germany in the French Revolution of 1492." "Really, Crow? Really?" Finished, but sequel on hold until further notice.
1. Chapter 1

**Hola! I just finished The Last Specter and have reignited my love of Professor Layton.**

**Robin: Does that mean you'll leave me alone?**

**Me: Shut up and stay in your own story!**

**Disclaimer: Do I _look_ like a game designer? Wait, I forgot you can't see me... Well anyways, I don't look like a game designer. I'm a freaking teenager!**

* * *

><p>Professor Hershel Layton reread the letter in his hands. Something was off about it, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it.<p>

Flora came into the room with a tray of tea and scones. "Professor? I made you some tea." She noticed his troubled expression. "Are you alright?" she asked, setting the tray down.

The Professor sighed. "I recieved a letter from Luke." Flora nodded. Three years ago Luke had moved back to Misthallery where he was born and raised. "Well, that sounds like excellent news. What's wrong?"

Layton looked up and down the letter again. "This letter... I believe there is a hidden message concealed in it."

Flora looked at the letter.

_Hello, Professor. It has been a while. I hope we see _

_each other very soon. Perhaps we could meet up in _

_London sometime. I am definately looking forward to_

_possibly seeing you again. I hope you can write back._

_ Your friend and apprentice, Luke Triton._

Flora ran a finger down the first collum of letters. "H-E-L-P. Help? That's odd." The Professor nodded. "It seems to be a hidden plea for help. Perhaps a trip to Misthallery is in order."

Layton sat back in his chair and immersed himself in thought. Flora waited a few moments, but soon became impatient.

"Professor, what are you thinking?" she asked, trying to be as polite as it was possible to be when she was worried about what Luke's message might mean.

"I am thinking... that perhaps it is time to call my old friend Emmy."

_**~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~**_

"Professor!" a voice called out and a woman in a yellow coat with an armful of books hurried down the steps of the University of London.

Her long brown hair was pulled hurriedly into a loose ponytail and she had slight bags under her eyes from a night of studying.

Once she reached the bottom of the steps, where Professor Layton and Flora were waiting, she beamed at them. "Professor, it's been so long!" she exclaimed.

"Emmy." The Professor said, tipping his hat. "How have your studies been?" Emmy had been studying to become an inspector for Scotland Yard.

"They've been great. Inspector Grosky even volenteered to be my mentor when I graduate. After a year as an aprentice, I'll be a full-fledged member of Scotland Yard." she said, still beaming.

"That's very exciting news. Good for you, Emmy." The Professor said, as gentleman-like as ever. "Enough with the pleansentries, Professor." Emmy said. "What's this about a mysterious note?"

"Ah, always right to the point. Some things never change." The Professor said. "Oh, just tell me." said Emmy, flushing.

Layton handed her the paper with Luke's letter on it. "Seem familiar?" he asked. Emmy frowned. "Hm. Hasn't he already used this puzzle? I wonder why he would write an almost identical hidden message to the same person he sent the first one to..."

"Um, excuse me, but I still don't really know who you are." This time, the voice came from Flora. "Oh, of course. I'm the Professor's former assistant and Scotland Yard's future inspector." Emmy said, extending her hand towards Flora.

Flora took it a shook gently. "I'm Flora. Professor Layton is my legal guardian." she said, letting go of Emmy's hand.

Emmy smiled at the Professor "First an apprentice, now a little girl under your custody? You must love kids, Professor."

The Professor laughed lightly, but changed the topic back to the letter. "Now, concerning the letter, I believe a trip to Misthallery is in order and I would be delighted if you would be so kind as to accompany us."

"Of course I will!" Emmy exclaimed. "A mysterious letter with a hidden plea for help? Completely Laytonesque!"

"Erm... I suppose." Layton said, still uncomfortable with the idea of anything being 'Laytonesque.' "Professor, what is 'Laytonesque?'" Flora asked.

Instead of the Professor, Emmy answered her. "It's, well... Something only Professor Hershel Layton could solve, if you know what I mean." she said.

Flora didn't know what she meant, but went along with it anyway. "So, are we going to Misthallery yet?" she asked the Professor.

"Yes, I believe we are, Flora."

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

_**Meanwhile**_...

"C'mon Crow! We're wasting time!" Luke called behind him. "Coming! Just give me a sec!" Crow's voice called out.

Luke glared at him from beneath his Black Raven hood. "One second is all they need to catch up with us." A figure in an identical costume appeared out of the shadows next to him. "Well, would you rather have them find out who we are?" he asked.

"Good point." Luke admitted grudgedly. "Wait, did you hear that?" he asked, noticing a sound coming from behind him.

"Don't make a sound." Crow whispered to his best friend. "C'mon, let's get back to base. I think the Black Ravens are ready to turn in for the night."

Luke gave him a grin. "Wait 'till they see it." Crow allowed himself a small grin before ducking back into the shadows with Luke right behind him. "Ouch." Luke said, as he hit his cast up against the wall they were using as cover.

Crow looked back to make sure he was alright. "Well next time, don't be such an idiot and they won't break your arm. You know the rules. Only break them when your in costume." he said, gesturing to his black robe.

"Better my arm than an innocent girl's." Luke said. "Yeah, Arianna's _real _innocent. If you haven't noticed, she's part of the resistance, too." Crow joked, reaching the end of an alleyway.

"Yeah, but she just a medic. If _you_ haven't noticed, we just spray-painted a raven on their HQ." Luke said, stooping down and running his hand along the ground as if he were looking for something.

He found it and pulled his weight back to reveal a trapdoor. "Let's just go to bed and watch their faces tomorrow. Hopefully we didn't leave any evidence when we left because _someone_ triggered the trip wire." Luke said before jumping down the trapdoor, closely followed by Crow.

* * *

><p><strong>Hopefully you like it! BTW certain people will be OOC in this story, such as Luke, because of the events that will be revealed in the later chapters.<strong>

**Luke: ...**

**Layton: ...**

**Me: ... You guys suck at random humor. **

**Luke: Not my fault that you forbid me to speak so I don't reveal my new personality.**

**Me: Touche. YO CROW! Get in here!**

**Crow: Uh, okay?**

**Me: Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hola!**

**Crow: What is it with you and speaking Spanish?**

**Me: Do you _want_ me to murder you?**

**Crow: ... Just get on with the story.**

**Diclaimer: ... Do I reeeeeeally need to put this? I already said I didn't own it in the first chapter. That isn't gonna change in a week. It's been disclaimmed. 'Nuff said.**

* * *

><p>Professor Layton drove as fast as the speed limit allowed. His famed intuition told him that once they found Luke, they would be in for a big surprise. After what seemed like an eternity, even though it was only two hours, they arrivied at Misthallery, but there was a problem. A large toll booth stood before them and the bar was lowered so that they couldn't pass.<p>

The Professor drove up to the burly man sitting in the booth. "Excuse me, sir. May I ask why this booth is here? We have come to visit a friend in Misthallery." The man looked up. "You're a little late, pal. There's been no such thing as Misthallery for two years. An earthquake widened all those chasms in town. Nobody made it out." he said in a gruff voice.

In the back seat, Flora's eyes teared up and her shoulders shook slightly. Was it possible that Luke was gone? No, she wouldn't, she _couldn't_ believe it. Flora had no ramantic intrest in Luke, as some might say, but she loved him like he brother she never had. Luke couldn't be gone. _The great Professor Layton's aprentice._ His voiced echoed in her head. How could he be dead?

The man in the booth hesitated, as if afraid to say what he was about to say, but he opened his mouth anyways. "May I ask who you were visiting?" The Professor saw no harm in telling him Luke's name. He would relized his mistake later. "We were going to visit Luke Triton." he said. The man in the booth tried to be nonchalant, but he made a mental note to remember that name.

The Professor tipped his hat and drove away from Misthallery, but he had not intention of leaving. Once they had drove out of sight, he pulled over and pulled out Luke's letter again. That's when Layton noticed something he hadn't seen before. A scrap of graphing paper stufed roughly into the envelope. On it, a map was drawn.

_._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._  
>I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I<br>I_I_I_I_IMHI_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I  
>I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I<br>I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_IXI_I_I  
>I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I<p>

(pretend that the 'I's and '_'s are gridlines)

Emmy looked over at him. "Hmm... It seems to be a map. This," She pointed to the 'MH.' "Must be Misthallery. So, if we find the 'X', we might find Luke!" Flora looked up hopefully. "Does this mean he's not... you know?" she asked. Emmy put her hand on Flora's shoulder. "Dont' worry, sweetie. We'll find him." Flora gave her a grateful smile.

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

Arianna carefully slipped a knife under the gauze of Luke's cast. Now, normally, a little girl with a knife pressed against someone's wrist would freak people out, but Arianna was the main medic for the Black Ravens. She had come in handy a lot considering all the times Luke got in trouble with _them_. Once the cast was off, Luke flexed his wrist a bit and led Arianna to the trapdoor that led above ground.

Luke ducked his head as he joined the kids all streaming towards the center of town. He was careful not to be suspicious in any way. _They_ were watching everyone much more carefully. Luke knew the dangers of being a Raven, but he never thought about the possibility that _they_ might find out he was a major leader in the Black Raven rebellion.

Then, he heard a voice that sent a shiver up his spine. "Triton!" a gruff voice growled. Luke turned around to see one of the 'goons' as the Black Ravens had dubbed them. The were all brawn and no brains. He grabbed Luke's arm and dragged him off to the side. Arianna looked like she wanted to do something, but it would only make things worse. Arianna glanced back again, but kept walking.

Luke ran through the last few days in his mind. Had he done something? Of course he had, he was a Black Raven, but _they _didn't know that. Or... did they? No, he told himself It's not possible. He took every precaution when it came to his identity. So what were _they_ taking for? Well... there was that letter he wrote to the Professor... Could _they_ possibly know about the hidden message and map?

Luke was half-dragged to what used to be the market. He was finally released from the man's grip when they reached an alleyway. _Cliche much?_ Luke thought to himself, but he didn't dare say it. The goon leaned over Luke to intimidate him. Luke wasn't scared of this jerk, but he played up the fear to make sure _they_ didn't suspect him as the Black Raven he was.

"You've been causing us some problems, Triton." Classic intimidation method. Try to sound tough to get the victim to confess. Luke decided to do the safe thing and keep his mouth shut. "Some of your friends showed up today. Bet you think you're real smart for sending them a singal." _I'm a whole lot smarter than you._ Luke said in his mind, but he swallowed his retort yet again.

"But you know what? You ain't that smart, kid." _Yeah, and you are?_ Luke was starting to get tired of not showing up this jerk, but he knew better than to talk back. Every kid in Misthallery did. So he kept his mouth shut and braced himself for what he knew would happen. Just as expected, another goon came up and pinned Luke's arm behind him. He closed him eyes as the first goon pulled his fist back and got ready to deliver a punch.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm so evil! Cutting off the story right before it got good.<strong>

**Luke: ...**

**Crow: I'm going to pretend I'm not enjoying this. OW! LUKE! YOU PUNCHED ME!**

**Luke: :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hola!**

**I'm baaaack!**

**Luke: Can I talk yet?**

**Me: Sigh. Fine.**

**Luke: Finally! Now I can-**

* * *

><p>Once the Professor, Flora, and Emmy discovered the coordinates the map led to, they discovered a secret trapdoor with a raven emblem etched into the wood. Emmy reached down and pulled the heavy wooden circle open. Inside was a long tunnel headed towards what once was Misthallery. "Well, let's get going, shall we?" Emmy said, brushing hair out of her face. The Professor nodded and climbed down, helping Flora down after.<p>

They were met with almost complete darkness. Emmy squinted into the darkness. "Here, I think I have a torch..." she said, reaching into her bag, pulling out a flashlight and turning it on. They could now see the long, winding tunnel ahead of them. The Professor led the way with Flora and then Emmy following close behind. They traveled in silence, the Professor deep in thought.

It took almost an hour, but they finally reached the end of the tunnel. The Professor lifted the exit panel and helped Flora and Emmy climb up. They were met with an oddly clean Misthallery lit by the moonlight. The Professor found it strange that an 'abandoned' town was taken care of so well. He looked at the chasms spanned by rope bridges. They were completely fine.

The man had lied to them, that much was clear. "But, the question is... why?" The Professor finished aloud. "Hm?" Emmy said, turning to face him. "Oh... I was just wondering why had the gentleman at the barrier say that the chasms widened, when the obviously had not, and the town looks as if it is still in use. Quite curious." The Professor said. "Hmm... Curious indeed." Emmy agreed.

Flora looked around, taking in all the sights, as she had not been with the Professor when he visited Misthallery and solved the case of the specter. She looked down the small roads and something moved in the corner of her eye. She gasped and turned towards the Professor. "Professor! Someone was over there!" she cried, pointing in the direction of the figure she had seen.

Just then, a person in black dropped from one of the rooftops. He, or she, was wearing the oddest thing Flora had ever seen. The person was dressed in a large black cloak that completely covered the figure, with something that looked like hay sticking out of the head hole and a bird mask. The hooded person raised their arms and Flora backed away, but the person just reached for their hood.

He revealed roundish face with light brown hair with a blue hat perched atop it and a yellow scarf around his neck. He removed the cloak and he had on a white shirt with an orange vest. He seemed to hesitate a moment before stepping out of the shadows completely and tilting his head to the side in confusion. "Professor." It was a statement, not a question. The Professor stepped forward. "Crow."

* * *

><p>Crow was surprised, needless to say, to run into Professor Layton himself. Luke had told him about a desperate hope to send Layton a letter. Only <em>they<em> sent out letters, and every single one was checked. Luke had to slip away to the post office and slip his letter in at the very last minute without being seen to have even a slim chance of sending a letter. Even then, it had to be in code.

Once he saw Layton, he knew what he had to do. He couldn't possibly explain much, but he knew the one thing that would get Layton to follow him anywhere. "Follow me to find Luke." he said, without so much as an introduction to the girl in pink that he didn't know. They had to move quickly before the night patrol came around. The next 'goon' was scheduled to be there in one minute.

"Luke?" the pink girl asked. "He's okay?" Crow nodded, and the light of a flashlight could be seen around the corner. Crow motioned for them to follow him and ducked into a side street. His feet glanced off the gravel with barely a sound. He turned his head and saw the others hurrying to catch up with him. He broke into a run and skidded to a stop at a seemingly dead end.

"A dead end?" the woman in the yellow coat said. What was her name? ...Emmy! That's it. Crow turned to face her and smiled. "Not a dead end. An entrance." He reached for a certain brick in the road, which came cleanly out. He showed the bottom to the small group and revealed a hollowed out space. Where the brick used to be, there was a handle. Another trap door.

Crow pullled the handle and revealed a ladder that went down beyond the eye's reach. "Well, let's get going." Crow said, a giant smile on his face as he jumped down and slid down the ladder instead of using the rungs. He landed on a balcony of a sort that looked out over a crowd of kids, all pushing each other around, trying to get to their assigned places. The Black Ravens.

Layton, Emmy, and the little girl dropped down next to him. The girl turned towards him angrily. "Where is Luke? Who are you? What is going on here?" Crow sighed. "In order: The infirmiry. I'm Crow, one of the founding members of the Black Ravens. As for what's going on... I'll explain on the way. I'm sure you all want to see Luke and he wants to see you."

"Oh... Of course. My name is Flora." the girl, apparently Flora, said apolegetically. Hm, short fuse, but shorter anger. Crow made a note of that. He started to lead them down towards the North wing of the former black market. "Well, I guess you could say this started about two years ago." Crow said, trying to cram in all the information they needed to understand the situation.

"This group of people that call themselves _The Order_ came into town. They... they rounded up all the kids. We still don't know where our...where our parents are." Crow's voice broke at the mention of his parents. He took a deep breath and continued. "We're working on figuring out why they came, but no leads so far. All we know for sure is that they aren't afraid to hurt innocent kids."

The girl named Flora looked confused. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Well... Imagine a world where if you break a rule, you wake up the next day with a broken leg. That world you're imagining? We're living in it. The Black Ravens are no longer in the black market buisness. We're like the Patriots up against Germany in the French Revolution of 1492."

"Really, Crow? Really?" said a laughing voice and a boy in a blue hat and sweater was leaning against the doorway the group was headed. "What?" Crow asked, oblivious to his slaughter of facts. The boy rolled his eyes. "I'm not even going to _begin_ to tell you what's wrong with that sentence." he said. Crow smiled. "Aw, c'mon. It couldn't have been _that_ off."

* * *

><p>The first thing Flora noticed about Luke was that he had a thin layer of gauze around his wrist. Apparently Crow noticed, too. He looked at Luke's wrist and said, "Don't tell me you broke your wrist the <em>same day<em> you got your cast off." Luke smiled and held up his injured hand. "Nah, it's just sprained." he said. Wait, 'nah'? Since when did Luke say that?

"Well, it'd be just like you to break it the same day the cast came off." Crow joked. Luke smiled and his eyes drifted over towards the Professor. His eyes lit up. "Professor!" he looked at Crow. "Told you he'd come." he said to him. Crow just rolled his eyes. "Whatever." Flora wasn'treally sure what to do. Luke was acting... different.

A redhead girl in a navy dress with a white bow in her hair came running up. "Luke, Crow, there's an emergency meeting for all of the senoir Black Ravens. We found out something about The Order!" she said. Was it just Flora or was she blushing a little when she looked at Luke? Luke looked back at the Professor and then said, "Well, what better way to explain things to you."

The girl introduced herself as Arianna. Flora noticed somehing she hadn't seen before: each of the 'Black Ravens,' as they called themselves, had a small bagde on. Each badge had a raven and another symbol, and they were either gold or silver. Crow had a golden one with a small crown on it. Luke's was also gold and had a pen symbol.

Flora looked at Arianna's and saw that her's was, yet again, gold and had a red cross on it. She looked at other badges as she passed the crowd of kids. A girl with blonde hair and blue eyes had a silver one with a computer symbol on it. A boy with messy brown hair and an oversized jacket had a silver one with a paintbrush on it.

"What are those badges?" Flora asked. Luke answered her while fighting through group of kids heading the the opposite way. "They're like Black Raven ID cards. Gold means you're a senoir member, silver is a regular member, and a few people have copper ones that mean they're new recruits. The symbols represent their jobs, or, in Crow's case, if they're a founding member."

"What does your's mean?" Flora asked. "The gold means I'm a senoir member, and the pen means I'm a planner. I come up with ways we can find out why The Order are here and how we can get them to leave." Many other questions floated around in Flora's head, but she just kept following Luke towards a door in the back of the... What would you call it? A cavern? Underground base?

The door led them to a place that looked like it was used for auctions. Luke, Crow, and Arianna climbed onto the stage and went behind the curtain. The others followed and found a back room with a table and chairs set up. Several kids were already there. Luke stepped forward. "Guys, Emmy, and Professor Layton, who you probably know, are here, and this is Flora."

There were eight people there, not including Flora or any of the people she entered with. A boy with orange hair wearing a long yellow coat and a blue scarf came up to Flora and shook her hand. "I'm Tony, Arianna's brother." he said. Next, a girl wearing a red bandanna introduced herself as Marilyn. A boy in a red shirt with pockets full of candy said his name was Tweeds.

A boy wearing a red jacket and a blue sweater held out his hand. "The name's Louis. Nice to meet you." Flora shook his hand and two more Ravens came to meet her. A boy and a girl. The girl had brown hair in pigtails and the boy had the same shade of brown hair with googles strapped around his head. The girl smiled. "I'm Wren, and this is my brother Socket."

Next cam a bot with glasses who was fiddling with some pieces of metal. I'm Scraps, and over there is Bagder." he said, pointing towards a boy with spiky hair and a yellow sweater. Luke smiled. "Well, now that you're aqquainted with everyone, let's get started, shall we?" Wren spoke first, "Well, we sent some of the silver recons into The Order's HQ."

"Recons?" Flora asked, then blushed because everyone was staring at her. "Recons are the people who gather information." Arianna kindly explained. "Now, as I was saying," Wren continued. "The recons found the online journal of one of The Order's scientists. Socket." Wren said, giving her brother center stage. Socket cleared his throat and began reading:

_I still don't see what's so great about this place, but the boss  
>says that this is definately the place we're looking for. I just<br>wish he would hurry up and find the target so we could get out  
>of here. The kid better be all that the boss says he will be. This<br>machine he's having me build isn't cheap. Hopefully, we'll find  
>whoever can actually <em>do_ something with it. If the boss doesn't  
>find the kid he wants soon, we're gonna end up with a plain box.<em>

As soon as Socket finished, Flora saw Crow whisper something to Luke. Luke thought for a moment before whispering back a response Flora could barely make out. "Maybe... Don't tell them about it until we have more information." Tony spoke up after a while. "Well, now we know they're after a kid from Misthallery who can make some sort of machine work."

"The question is," said Louis. "Why?" Flora glanced at Crow and Luke, who were sharing a knowing look. Marilyn, however, was the one who answered. "Well, whatever they want him or her for, it can't be good." she said. "Which is why we need to find the person and protect them." piped in Badger. "I agree." Tweeds said, nodding.

* * *

><p>About a mile away from where the Black Ravens were meeting, single Black Raven, still in costume, struggled in two goons' arms. "Let...me...GO!" the Raven said, with a male voice. A third person was in front of him, hidden by shadows. "Oh, we'll let you go, right after you answer some questions for us." he said, and the anonymous Raven sneered.<p>

"Why should I tell you anything? Go ahead, beat me up. It's not as if you haven't done that before." The shadowed figure leaned in and ripped off the Raven's hood. "Because," he said. "You have two parents who I can lead you to. You can leave Misthallery forever and go find your mom and dad." The Raven's eyes went wide, and he was hanging on every word.

The two goons dropped him and he fell to his knees, giving a slight whimper. "...Okay. I'll answer your questions." he said, not making eye contact with the figure and instead looking at the ground. "Who is the leader of the Black Ravens?" the figure asked. The Raven continued to look at the ground as he sold out the people who had rescued him from bleeding to death.

_*Flashback*_

_He was yanked into an alley where a burly man beat him repeatedly. He lay on the stone floor, his leg bent at an awkward angle and bleeding heavily. The man walked away without so much as a glance back. He thought he was going to die when two figures in black cloaks came up to him. "We have to get him down to base." a girl's voice said._

_He was grabbed by the arms and pulled to the end of the alley where one figure opened a door in the ground and the other whispered in his ear that everything was going to be alright. That was the day he became a Raven._

_*End Flashback*_

"Answer me!" A kick to the stomach tore him away from his memory. "I... I don't know. There are about eleven leading members, but I heard that there are two who are really running the show. I... I don't know their names, though. An-and I've never seen them." "Where is the entrance to their base?" the man insisted.

The Raven gasped and held his stomach where he was kicked, but answered. "At-at the end of the northern back alley. Two bricks away from the wall, five to the right. It-it'll reveal a trapdoor. The man smiled and turned to the goons. "As much as I'd love to keep my word, check that he isn't the one." The Raven looked up. "The-the one?"

The man smiled down at him. "The one who doesn't die when we try our machine." The goons grabbed the Raven's arms and pined them behind his back, then begn dragging him away. "But my parents! You-you said-" he stuttered, eyes wide with fear. The man leaned over him. "You shouldn't be so trusting." He had one final thought: What have I done?

* * *

><p><strong>OMG, my longest chapter ever!<strong>

**Luke: I _hate_ cliffhangers.**

**Me: I love them!**

**Crow: No duh.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: It's called a DISclaimer. Besides, this would be inside of your DS if I owned Professor Layton.**

**Important Note: I am reffering to Yula as Arianna because I played the English version where she was named Arianna and that is how I know her. I hope most of you who know her as Yula aren't discouraged by this, but I know that if I start writing her as Yula, half the time she'll be Arianna and half the time she'll be Yula.**

* * *

><p>Luke walked down some of the underground corridors with Crow, talking about his 'theory.' In Luke's opinion, it was absurd, though he supposed it <em>could<em> be a possibility considering what happened right before The Order arrived... "I'm just saying that it fits with what we know." Crow finished.

Luke shook his head, "But what we know doesn't point us to that. You could fit multiple reasons to the situation, but what we know points to a machine, not... _that." _Crow frowned. "You know you'll have to tell the Professor about what happened." he said. Luke sighed. "I know, I know. It's just... What happened made no sense."

Crow shrugged. "A lot of things don't make sense. That doesn't mean they aren't real. Some things can only be exlained by the unexplainable." Luke stopped walking and looked at Crow. "Who are you and what did you do to my dumb best friend?" Crow gave him a smack to the head for that.

Luke laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "You know I'm kidding. You're smart. ...Sometimes." This time, Luke knew to duck before Crow smacked him again. Crow's hand ended up sailing over Luke, causing him to lose balance. Luke took advantage of this and tripped him.

Luke laughed and offered Crow his hand to help him up. Crow took it and pulled himself upright. "Not funny." he said, but he had a supressed smile on his face. "Then why are you smiling?" Luke teased. Crow stuck out his tounge and the boys broke out into spontaneous laughter.

"C'mon," Luke said, stifling his laughter. "The Professor will probably have finished the tour by now." Crow nooded and the two boys walked down the corridor that lead to the former auction room that now served as the Black Ravens main meeting room.

When they arrived at their destination, they found the Professor, Emmy, and Flora sitting at the large table, talking quietly amoungst themselves. Arianna and Tony were also sitting with them, answering the dozens of questions Luke knew they would have.

Luke sat down next to Emmy and Crow took the seat next to him. "So, did you enjoy the tour?" Luke asked, making conversation. "I suppose. Though I myself would like to hear more about 'The Order' as you call them." the Professor said. "Well, what do you want to know?" Crow asked.

"Well, for starters, I would like to know the identity of their leader." the Professor said. "Wouldn't we all?" Crow replied with a smirk. Luke gave a small laugh and said, "You know everything we know about them. Well, unless you want specifics..."

The Professor raised an eyebrow. "Specifics?" he inquired. "Yeah, you know. Like how they separated the kids and their parents, details about the beatings, and just plain old day-to-day stuff." Luke said. "Well, I'd be very open to some of these specifics."

Crow looked at Luke. "Told ya it would come up." Luke rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Crow." he said, pushing Crow lightly on the shoulder. Flora spoke up. "What is he talking about? What came up?" Arianna leaned across the table. "Is this about the flute?" she asked. Crow nodded. "Yup. Right before The Order took over."

The Professor looked intrigued. "Tell me more about this event. Perhaps it will shed light on the current events." he said. Luke smiled. "Same old Professor." he said. Crow nodded and looked at Luke. "Well, since you're the apprentice, you should tell him." he said with a slight smirk.

Luke glared at Crow fo a second, then sighed. "Fine." he said, but that didn't stop him from punching Crow in the arm. Crow smiled and waved his hand for Luke to continue. Luke pused for a moment to think about how to say it. "Well, it went sorta like this..."

_Flashback (in Luke's POV)_

_I was heading over to the market to hang out with Crow. "Hey Luke!" I heard Crow and turned around to see him with a crazy grin on his face. "You'll never guess what just happened!" he exclaimed. "Did you and Wren finally hook up?" I joked._

_Crow looked at me bewildered. "What? No! We're not-... I don't-" I started laughing. "Relax, I was just joking. Although all the Ravens say you guys had a thing going on while I was in London." I said, smirking at the look on Crow's face._

_"Oh, whatever. I was gonna tell you that I found_ this_!" Crow said, holding up an ocarina. I looked at it sceptically. "It looks like-" Crow interrupted me before I could finish. "It looks just like the Specter's Flute!" he exclaimed._

_I sighed. "Crow, we've already proven there's no real Specter years ago." Crow crossed his arms. "No, we proved it wasn't attacking the town. There still could be a Specter!" he said stubbornly. I sighed and shook my head. "Will you _ever_ change?" Crow smiled. "Not planning too. I seem to annoy you just fine like this."_

_I rolled my eyes. "C'mon. My dad says there's gonna be some big town meeting in the center of town. Everyone has to go." Crow nodded. "Yeah, I heard about it. Let's go get Arianna and Tony and we can all go to the meeting together."_

_"What about the Black Ravens?" I asked. Crow hardly ever went anywhere without a fellow Raven. "They left for the town square before I came over here. Trust me, I'd much rather hang with them over you." he replied, grinning. I laughed and we raced to the Barde Manor._

_We arrived at the front door panting. "I won!" Crow declared after we caught our breath. "No way!" I yelled. "I was here way before you!" Before we could start an arguement, the door opened and Arianna poked her head out. "Hi... Why are you two yelling?" she asked._

_"It's nothing. We were hoping you and Tony could head down to the town meeting today with us." I said. Arianna smiled. "Sure. Let me go get Tony." She was about to head inside again when a voice from the house called out. "I'm coming! Just give me a second."_

_Tony came rushing down the stairs, cramming his arms into his yellow jacket sleeves. "Okay," he said when he got to the door. "I'm ready." Arianna and Tony stepped outside, closing the door behind them, and the four of us started walking towards town._

_"So, Arianna, Tony." Crow said as we walked. "Do _you_ believe in the Specter?" Arianna paused before saying, "Well, if Loosha and the Golden Garden are real, then I suppose it's possible." Tony just shrugged. "I'm not sure. It's hard to believe a bedtime story."_

_"Thank you, Tony." I said, giving a glare to Crow. "Atleast_ someone_ here doesn't believe that any musical instument they happen to find summons magical beasts to do their bidding." Crow glared right back. "Well atleast Arianna has a little faith."_

_Arianna leaned over to Tony's ear. "I don't think this is about us at all." Tony nodded. Crow and I continued to debate about the flute, while taking the time to fill in Arianna and Tony about the day's events. They didn't give their opinion, knowing __that we would barely listen._

_When we finally got to the town square, the Black Ravens waved us over to where they were all standing in a group. I smiled at Crow and said softly enough so that only he could hear, "Better go over to your girlfriend." I saw Crow's face burn red and ran over to the Ravens before he got me back._

_That's about when things went downhill. My dad, re-elected as the Mayor since we moved back, gave a speech introducing some scientists that were 'going to put Misthallery on the map.' Socket leaned over and whispered, "We are on the map. There's a map of town right next to them."_

_This earned snickers from the entire group. My dad, who had passed the microphone to one of the scientists, glared at me. He didn't really approve of me hanging out with the 'delinquent' crowd since we moved back. I still hung out with the though, they're my friends._

_Looking back, I wish I had paid a little more attention_ before_ the scientist said, "Now, there is one thing we will need the town to provide for our experiments." There was a murmur through the crowd, most people thinking they needed money. If only that were the case. _

_The scientist let the news settle in before he said what exactly was needed, "Test subjects." The men that the Ravens would eventually call goons flooded the town square. There were screams and people being dragged away from their families. Total chaos._

_Then, there was sudden and complete silence except for the sound of a flute. I turned to the direction I heard it in and saw a wide-eyed Crow. He mouthed two words. 'The flute.' I looked towards his bag and the Black Ravens huddled together._

_Crow removed the ocarina from his bag and held in up in the middle of the circle of Ravens. Sure enough, that's where the sound was coming from. "No way..." Crow whispered. Then we heard a voice break the silence. "Hey! The noise is coming from that kid!"_

_One of the goons came up and grabbed both of Crow's arms, pinning them behind his back. "Let him go!" I wasn't sure who said it, but I think it was more than one of us and I found myself saying it with them. There was a moment when I couldn't see anything, then Crow was back standing next to me._

_More goons came towards us and every Raven was kicking and punching, refusing to let them separate us. Somewhere in the chaos, Crow dropped the ocarina and the goons saw it playing itself. One of them grabbed Crow by the collar of his shirt. "What are you trying to pull?" he growled._

_For the first time, I saw fear in Crow's eyes. I hadn't even seen him afraid when Descole was attacking the town with that giant machine of his. "Nothing, I swear!" he yelled. "I'm not sure how it's even doing that!" The goon pushed Crow away from him and Crow toppled into me, sending us both to the ground._

_Wren and Socket helped us to our feet as another of the goons stomped on the ocarina, shattering it into a million pieces and silencing the sound. Then, the scientist who still stood at the podium took out a remote. "This is meaningless." he sighed as he pushed a button. A thick gas started to fill the town square._

_I started coughing and watched as people fell to the ground around me. I'm not sure who said it, but I heard someone yell, "Knock-out gas! Don't breathe it in!" It was too late, though. My vision became blurry and I sunk to the ground._

_End of Flashback_

After Luke finished the story, there was a silence that lasted about half a minute before Arianna spoke up. "I didn't know you liked Wren." she said innocently. "I do not!" Crow yelled. "You _so _like her, and since I'm such a good friend, I'll find out if she likes you." Luke said, laughing and running out of the room.

* * *

><p><strong>Over 2000 words! Yayz!<strong>

**Don't you just love Luke and Crow's antics? For thoses of you who know Young Justice, I'm very reminded of Robin and Wally...**

**Robin: Hm... It does seem like something I might do.**

**Me: HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU TO STOP APPEARING IN THE WRONG STORY!**

**Robin: I dunno. Obviously atleast once more.**

**Me: *facepalm***

**Crow: Review so I can keep watching her get frustrated!**

**Luke: It _is_ pretty funny...**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own PL.**

**...No random humor today... Sorry.**

**I have important news! This story is on temporary hiatus. I will be writing a Bleach story based on the KONY 2012 video. I feel that it deserves my undivided attention and I hope you understand.**

**Also, if you have not seen the video, please check it out on youtube, or www . kony2012 . com (without the spaces).**

* * *

><p>The Professor watched with amusement as Crow and Luke goofed around with each other. Though it was ungentlemanly, the Professor couldn't bring himself to dislike the large smile on Luke's face.<p>

The Professor decided to focus his attention on the matter at hand. He leaned back in his chair and wondered what The Order's intention was. He didn't even have an inkling as to what was going on.

If only there was some way to get into The Order's base for a good while to search for clues, but Crow had informed him that every Raven that had tried to stay for more than 15 minutes had been caught, and never seen outside the base again.

Perhaps there was some other way to gather information. Luke had mentioned that the scientists working with The Order occasionally made appearances to 'evaluate' the kids imprisoned in Misthalllery.

Maybe if he could get to one of them, he could get some answers... Though it didn't seem very likely... This was going to be a difficult puzzle to solve...

Oh, Professor... If only you knew how true that was.

As you sit there and think, The Order has gotten the entrance opened.

Your lives are about to get much more interesting, Ravens. Much more.

* * *

><p><strong>...I'M ASHAMED OF HOW SHORT THIS IS!<strong>

**...Now I've gone and ruined my epic mysterious moment...**

**Sigh... Well, cya in maybe a few months... My KONY 2012 story will only be like 10 chapters, and I will update as fast as possible.**

**Farewell, my dear readers!**

**...For now.**

**Yay! I got my epis moment back! ...Aaaaaaaaand I ruined it again...**


	6. Chapter 6

**I have returned from the dead!**

**Crow: ...I'd like to say I missed you, but...**

**Luke: We hate you.**

**Crow: What he said.**

**Me: Shut it.**

**Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to be able to create a sophistericated character like Layton.**

**Luke: Sophistericated?**

**Me: Shut. It.**

* * *

><p>Luke and Crow were playing a rousing game of paper football when Flora came up to them. "How can you just sit around when things are like this?"<p>

Luke shrugged. "It's been years. You learn that it can't be solved overnight. It takes time."

Flora looked troubled.

Luke noticed and stopped messing around with Crow. "Hey... Are you okay?"

"Well... I was just thinking... You've really changed, Luke."

"Well... I've been through a lot lately..."

"...I guess it's not surprising, but..."

"But?" Luke cocked his head to the side.

"But I guess I expected something else when we came here."

"Things don't always go the way you plan." Luke's voice trailed off, lost in deep thought.

"Hey, Professor?" Crow piped up.

"Yes, Crow?" The Professor asked.

"What if this is the case you can't solve?"

The Professor paused, surprised at Crow's sudden question.

"I doubt there is a puzzle or a case in this world that is unsolvable."

Crow paused for a second. "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"

"Well, no one knows and-"

"Then there are puzzles that can't be solved."

"Well, I suppose, but-"

"So what if this is one of them?"

The Professor was silent for a while.

"Thought so." Crow straightened his hat and slouched in his chair.

Luke got out of the chair that was across from Crow and sat next to him instead, placing a hand of his shoulder.

Then, a ringing made its way to their ears.

Luke's head snapped up and he and Crow shared a look.

"It's the signal." Luke said softly.

As if on cue, both boys got out of their seats at the same time and ran out of the room.

Arianna, The Professor, Flora, and Emmy followed them.

Outside, it was pandamonium. Every kid in the entire base was running towards two bins that held Black Raven costumes.

The original Ravens were tossing costumes to everyone and directing them down to the end of the cavern.

"What on Earth is going on?" The Professor asked.

"The Order is in the Black Raven base." Luke said.

"See, we take turns keeping watch of the entrance. It's Nabby's turn now. That's why he wasn't at the meeting." Crow explained.

"Oh, I think I remember him!" Emmy exclaimed.

"We've got to go." Luke said, running over to the costume bins.

Crow followed without hesitation and the others trailed behind them.

Luke got to the bins first and grabbed six costumes, handing them out to each member of their little group. "Put these on. Then, follow the others. Crow and I have to help with the evac." Luke said, slipping on the robe.

Once Luke, Arianna, and Crow were all in costume, they left the others to help Ravens get out through the back exit.

Flora held her robe awkwardly. "Are we really supposed to wear these?"

"Well, if these Order people see us, then Luke's going to be in a lot of trouble." Emmy answered, pulling up her hood.

The Professor and Flora followed her example and put the robes on.

They followed the stream of kids heading towards the back of the cavern and saw that there was an emergency exit.

A scream rang out from behind them and they saw a Raven get pulled backwards by a 'goon' and have their hood pulled down to reveal the freckled face of a young girl with auburn hair.

More of the goons blocked the path to the emergency exit and the Ravens were trapped.

* * *

><p><strong>So short, but I wanted to get this out ASAP.<strong>

**Crow: Meh, all your stuff is short.**

**Me: Hurtful. :(**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I no own.**

**Luke: Wow, so articulate.**

**Me: Shut it!**

**Crow: *snickers* You get really worked up a lot, y'know.**

**Me: Say that one more time and you'll find yourself waking up in ER.**

**Crow: *gulp***

****Hey, I'm trying something new on my author's notes. I started to realize that many of my conversations make NO sense out of context, so in the first AN, I'll give you an *drumroll* OUT OF CONTEXT QUOTE! In the ending one, I'll give an explanation of how the convo came to that point. First Out of Context Quote:****

**"Oh-kay... So, basically, you're a vampire that feed off blood that tastes like rubber? ...Wow..."**

* * *

><p>Black Ravens were dropping like flies as the goons pulled hoods down and threw kids down to the ground. Luke and Crow could only watch as more and more kids were handcuffed and uncloaked.<p>

Another scream sounded as one Raven tried to break through the wall of goons and was picked up by the neck and thrown back into the sea of black-clad children.

The Raven's hood had fallen down and a shock of bright red hair was revealed, framing a tear stained face. The young girl brought a hand to her throat and had a coughing fit, resulting from her injured windpipe, thanks to the goon.

Another Raven kneeled down and helped her up.

Luke's eyes scanned the goons, looking for a way out. There was none to be found.

"Alright, I think we've had enough meaningless violence." a raspy voice rang out from behind the goons, and a lanky man in a labcoat pushed his way through the muscley men.

The man had gray hair that fell in his eyes, which were behind a pair of thin glasses with rectangular lenses. He was holding a clipboard and Luke could see hastily scribbled names filling up the paper.

"I'll make you a deal." he rasped. "We have intel that there is a core group of leaders in this little rebellion. If you come forward willingly, the rest of the members shall be let go, but _all_ of the leaders must come forward."

Luke felt his stomach drop. He couldn't let everyone be captured. Slowly he took a step forward and reached up to his hood. The black fabric fell to his shoulders and revealed an emotionless face. He locked eyes with the smirking scientist in the labcoat.

The scientist looked at one of the goons and nodded in Luke's direction. The goon grabbed Luke's forearm and pulled him so he was standing in front of everyone and his arms were pinned behind his back.

The scientist took a look around. "What? No other volenteers? Guess he came forward for nothing." His arm drifted to his hip, where Luke saw a holster for a gun. His eyes widened as the scientist's hand gripped the gun.

"Wait!"

Crow rushed forwards, his hood down. He panted slightly. "S-stop..." he stuttered.

A goon grabbed Crow and brought him next to Luke.

"Thanks." Luke whispered.

"I would've come forward, gun or no gun, anyways." he whispered back.

One by one, each of the original Ravens, plus Arianna and Tony, came forward and were restrained.

The scientist grinned ad straightened his glasses. "Now, there is one other matter. We were informed that outsiders have gotten inside Misthallery. A Mr. Layton and his two companions."

The scientist's hand gripped the gun again and pressed it against Luke's head. "Come forward or he dies." He said coldly.

Luke, on instinct, tried to squirm away from the gun, but he was held firmly in place.

As anyone could have predicted, the Professor, Emmy and Flora came forward, Flora clutching to the folds of the Professor's robe as if it were her lifeline.

"All right, everyone else, GET OUT." The scientist fired two gunshots in the air and every Raven not restrained cleared out, the able ones getting the one that had been caught and undoing the restraints.

The original Ravens, plus the Proessor, Flora and Emmy, were handcuffed and put in a straight line.

The scientist paced up and down the line. "Now, it seems the years of tryin to find you pesky little children has come to an end. And now we have the leaders of the infamous _Black Ravens_." he said the words 'Black Ravens' as if they were acid on his tounge.

"Take them to headquarters." he told the goons, and they were herded out of the cavern and across town, into the Order's main base of operations.

* * *

><p>"Have they been captured?"<p>

"Yessir."

"Did you run the tests?"

"Yessir."

"Well?"

"There are two that have a high probability of surviving."

"Which two?"

"Crow Corvino***** and Luke Triton."

"Hm... Use Triton. He will not only survive the test, but it shall also settle a score with Layton."

"Yessir, Mr. Descole, sir."

Descole turned in his heel and walked out the door of his chambers, a look of triumph gracing his features.

* * *

><p><strong>Gasp! Our mystery villian is none other than Descole himself! WHAT IS THI MADNESS?<strong>

***I have no idea what Crow's last name is, so I used the Italian word for Raven.**

**Out-Of-Context Explination: I was at my cousin's house and we were on the trampoline with water balloons and she took one with a hole in it and drank the water, claiming she was a vampire. I responded with the quote above.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: If I owned Professor Layton, the next game would be out in America already and I would be happily solving puzzles instead of torturing Luke and Crow on this site. Actually... I probably still would be torturing them... But it would be in the game, and not on this site... And I would've designed the puzzles, so I couldn't solve them... I'm confuzzled! But I don't own Professor Layton, so we'll never know what might've been.**

* * *

><p>Luke sighed from inside his cell. The cell was basically a hollow stone block with a door made of metal bars and an old school lock. Each cell held three people, and there were numerous cells lining the corridor.<p>

The Professor, Emmy and Flora were in one cell. Tony, Wren, and Socket were in another. Louis, Badger, and Nabby shared a cell. Scraps, Tweeds, and Marilyn were in one cell, and the final cell was occupied by Crow, Luke, and Arianna.

Luke sat next to the bars with his head laid back against the wall. "I'm sorry for getting you into this, Professor." he said.

"Nonsense, my boy. If this was meant to happen, then I would not wish it to happen to you alone."

"Thanks." Luke said with a small smile.

"Hey, guys..." Crow suddenly sat up.

"What?" Luke turned around and faced Crow with a raised eyebrow.

"The pins..." Crow's eyes were wide, then he cracked a smile and faced Luke. "They didn't confiscate the pins!"

"The pins?" Luke leaned forward, now interested.

"Wren! Can you see any guards coming?" Crow said, as Wren was in the cage on the end, so she would have the best view.

Wren looked down the hall. "Nope. Don't see anyone."

Crow's smile brightened. "Excellent!" He scrambled over to the door and took off his pin.

"What're you doing?" Luke asked as he sat next to Crow with a curious expression.

Crow held up the pin, which was now opened so that the sharp point was sticking out. "You see a pin..." He grabbed the lock on the door and put the pin inside it. "I see a lockpick."

Luke's eyes lit up. "Crow! You're a genius!"

"Yeah!" Socket undid his pin and started picking the lock on his cell. Louis and Scraps did the same.

"What about us?" Emmy asked. "We don't have any pins."

Before anyone could answer Emmy, Wren called out, "Guards!"

Each Raven using a pin immediately pinned them back onto themselves and backed away from the bars so they wouldn't seem suspicious.

Two guards walked down the corridor and stopped in front of the cell that held Luke, Crow, and Arianna.

One guard grabbed a ring of keys on his belt, and after flicking through a couple of them, he jammed one into the lock and yanked the door open.

He grabbed Luke's shoulder and jerked him to his feet. Luke let out a sharp cry of pain as the man's large hand crushed his shoulder.

"C'mon kid. You're coming with us." the guard said, roughly pushing Luke in the direction the guards had entered in.

Luke stumbled foward and the guard slammed the door shut again and locked it.

Crow moved so he was right next to the bars, glaring at the guards. "Oi, what's this about?"

"None of your buisness." the first guard said.

"'Sides, if I were you, I'd sure worry lot more 'bout myself, 'stead of an already lost cause." the second one added with a snicker.

"What do ya mean _lost cause_?" Crow demanded.

"Pretty self-explanitory, righ'? I mean, y'all won't get nowhere trying to save the punk." Guard #2 said, jerking his thumb at Luke.

Crow looked like he was about to make a rather loud, and not to mention _rude_, comment, but Luke interrupted him. "Don't worry, I'll be fine." he said with a confident smile.

Guard numero dos snorted. "Yea, righ'. Just keep tellin' yourself that."

Luke was led away before anyone could see his fearful expression.

Crow fumed to himself for a bit, then said, "Wren? Are we all clear?"

"Yeah..."

"Good. Let's get Luke out of there ASAP." Crow started picking the lock again, but his hands were shaking from the pure _hatred_ he felt for The Order, and every mistake he made got him angrier, while the angrier he got, the more mistakes he made.

"Crow..." Arianna said in a small voice.

"What?"

"Maybe... Maybe I should try picking the lock." she said while wringing her hands nervously.

Crow sighed. "I'm really _that_ bad?" A chorus of 'Yeah's filled the corridor. "Gee, thanks for sugarcoating it, guys." Crow mumbled.

Arianna took out her pin and went to work on the lock.

Guards occasionally patrolled the corridors, so they had to take multiple pauses, and many Ravens rotated who picked the lock for their cell.

The pins were far from perfect lockpicks, but after several minutes of switching places and hiding their escape attempt and a few cuss words muttered quietly, they eventually got out of their cells.

"Let's move quickly, before we get any unwanted attention from guards." Emmy suggested.

Everyone nodded and Crow took the lead, sneaking down the hall.

"...What happens if the guards find us?" Flora's timid voice broke through the silence.

Crow stopped to consider her question. "...You know... I'm not exactly sure. So let's avoid that senario."

Flora nodded numbly while her mind raced. The Professor seemed to notice her anxiety. "Don't worry, dear. It won't come to that." he said and her put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Crow turned around and held a finger to his lips.

"Sorry..." Flora whispered. Crow responded by pressing the finger against his lips again. This time, Flora got the message and stayed quiet.

Crow motioned for everyone to follow him, and slowly they crept down the corridor, each praying that no guards were scheduled to come down the hallway for a while.

* * *

><p><strong>Slight cliffie there, but I hope it's not too bad...<strong>

**Also, if any of you are reading my other stories, you'll notice that I'm trying to rotate which ones I update, so please forgive me if I take a while to update.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I may own a ice cream bar that tastes like a York peppermint patty, but I don't own Professor Layton. Cuz if I did, then the mystery would probably be about candy raining from the sky, and Crow would be Layton's co-apprentice with Luke, and Flora wouldn't be captured SO FREAKING MUCH!**

**This chapter is a hallway. (You'll find out what that means in a few seconds)**

* * *

><p>Luke hated hallways.<p>

They always had to be so long and ominous. They made your nervousness increase with every step. They were just so... They were fillers. That's what they were. Meaningless stretches of nothing in order to draw out suspense until you were shaking with fear and anticipation for what was at the end of that hallway.

And that's exactly what Luke was doing.

Every step echoed up and down the hallway.

Every breath reverberated off the walls.

Every inch farther down made Luke feel smaller and more helpless.

So much noise.

So much silence.

So much nothing.

Too much of everything.

It was driving him insane.

_What do they want me for?_

_Who's leading all this?_

_Why do I suddenly feel claustrophobic?_

_...Is this it? Are they going to kill me?_

Questions swam through Luke's head and he felt that he was going to be sick.

The guard had said he was a lost cause... Did that mean they planned to kill him?

_I don't want to die._

Luke tried to keep his composure. He wasn't killed by the scientist when they were brought here, so they must want him alive.

_Or they're boss wants to do the deed himself._

Or maybe they want me to rat out the other members.

_But they would've just captured them all at HQ instead of letting them go._

Maybe...

_Maybe what?_

...I don't want to die.

_But I'm going to..._

Luke wished the hallway would end already. How long had they been walking?

_I hope they make it quick._

* * *

><p>Crow hated hallways.<p>

Sure, they led where you needed to go, but you never got there. There was always a wrong turn, or a dead end, or guards trying to kill you.

Then there was the worst plan in history. Especially if you're in a hallway.

_"Let's split up."_

Why not just say; _"Let's all get lost in a labyrinth of hallways and eventually get caught and possibly killed. Doesn't that sound like a good idea?" _

Still, splitting up was their best chance of finding Luke before...

_Don't think about that. Focus on finding Luke._

What if he's dead?

_He'll be fine._

What if he's not. What if something horrible happens?

_Nothing's gonna happen._

Well now it's jinxed!

_Stop being paranoid!_

But what if-

"Shut up already." Crow muttered.

"Huh?" Arianna said, tilting her head to the side.

_Crap, I forgot she was still here._

"Uh... Nothing. I was just-uh... Preventing myself from jinxing myself"

"...Whatever you say, Crow."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, so uber short filler chapters will not be usual, just so you know. I just wanted to take a little time to show how similar Luke and Crow have become, and the inner turmoil that I live off. Seriously, this stuff is what fuels me to write.<strong>

**Also, there is a poll posted on my profile about whether I should post longer chapters with big gaps (like I've been doing) or shorter chapters (not as short as this one, though) every week or so. I would appreciate it if you took the time to vote.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Okay, so it seems like most of you like short chaps, but they're only leading by one vote, so go out and VOTE people! **

**Disclaimer: I'll put this in puzzle form: There are two people. One is rich, one is poor. One owns Professor Layton, the other does not. The first makes video games, the second writes on a fanfiction site. Which one am I?**

* * *

><p>As soon as Crow heard Luke, his heart sank.<p>

"H-hey! Let me go!" there was the sound of a door slamming shut, and then a scream: Luke's scream.

Crow immediately took off as fast as he could in the direction of the scream.

"Crow! Wait!" Arianna yelled, but Crow was long gone and she had no choice but to run after him.

Crow sped around a corner so fast he ran straight into someone and the both fell on the floor. For a terrifying second, he thought it was a guard, but when he looked up, he saw a thin man picking his top hat off of the ground.

"Professor!"

"Crow? Were you following Luke's voice as well?" Note the lack of the word 'scream'.

Crow nodded. "C'mon!"

They both took off down the hallway, and a few seconds later, Emmy, Flora, and Arianna met up in the same spot and sped down the hallway, hoping to catch up to Crow and the Professor.

Crow was starting to pant, but he pushed himself as fast as he could go. Luke didn't scream easily. When he got 'punished' (read: beaten within an inch of his life), the goons were lucky if they got a grunt out of him. If Luke was screaming, they must be doing something- Crow stopped himself from thinking about it.

His steps echoed down the hallway, and their 'sneak around and don't get caught' plan completely went out the window. After a minute, Crow was convinced the hallway was conpiring against them. Seriously! What kind of wackjob makes a halway _this_ long!

Finally, a door was in sight at the end of the hallway. Crow threw it open and completely ignored all the delicate-looking science equiment and headed towards a room past it, where he heard voices, effectively breaking atleast half of them.

He got to the door and tried the knob. Locked.

"Allow me," The Professor offered. Turns out the lock was a puzzle-some wacko's idea of a clever idea. Come _on_. All puzzles have a solution. Why not just invite everyone trying to break in for tea?

The door swung open, but the next room was empty. Well, it wasn't exactly a room, there wall a glass wall dividing it in two, and on the side Crow and the Professor were on, there was a bunch of monitors that seemed to be showing-or _showed_, since they didn't seem to be monitoring anything at the moment, they just showed old data-someone's vital systems.

On the closed off side, there were closed vents on the ceiling that had black and yellow warning tape around them.

Crow walked numbly to the center of the room. "He-he should've been right here. There were voices and-and... He should've been here."

The Professor walked towards him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "They can't have gone far."

There was the sound of static and all the monitors went black, except for white words printed in the middle of each.

_Say your last goodbyes._

Then, the words were replaced by a picture of Luke, hands tied behind his back, with duct tape across his mouth. The words 'live feed' were in the corner.

His eyes widened as soon as he saw them. He was trying to yell something through the tape, but the only sound that came out was "MMMMPH!"

"Luke!" Crow yelled in shock. Luke, in response, yelled harder, but no discernable words made it past the tape.

"Luke, we'll find you. I promise," the Professor said, sounding oddly calm considering the circumstances. But, then again, he was pretty good in high pressure situations.

Luke's yells stopped and he looked at Professor with moist eyes. His shoulders rose and fell as Crow guessed he took a big breath to calm himself down.

Luke then locked eyes with Crow and a new, confident look lit up his eyes. Crow could practically imagin him saying, _"You better hurry, idiot, or I'm gonna kill you."_

That made a small smile cross his face, but it dissapeared as soon as Luke's picture blinked out and he and the Professor were left alone with a bunch of blank monitors.

The door behind them opened and the rest of the Ravens, plus Emmy and Flora, all looked around, soon noticing that their 'rescue mission' had failed.

Arianna was the first to speak. "Where's Luke?" Her voice sounded like it was about to crack and she had tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes.

Crow never even turned around. He was still staring at the monitor, not moving or saying a word.

The Professor stepped in, "He's... gone."

* * *

><p><strong>Alright! So, first of the new short chaps! Good? Bad? Makes you wanna throw up? Makes you wanna kill Descole violently?<strong>

**Next chap is Luke's perspective on what happened! Oh the suspense!**

**Luke: *deadpan* Whoop-de-doo.**

**Me: *inches away before I get hurt* **


	11. Chapter 11

**Okay, stupid me just realized that the whole 'Say your last goodbyes' thing sounded like Luke was about to be killed, when that totally wasn't the image I was going for... Woops. I was going for a more you'll-never-see-him-again-goodbye than a he'll-be-dead-soon-goodbye.**

**Disclaimer: Aren't the past ten disclaimers enough for you people? GOD.**

* * *

><p>Luke felt dread well up inside him as the painfully long hallway came to an end, a door standing just in front of him.<p>

The door opened to reveal a man Luke hoped he would never see again. he knew immediately this was the leader of The Order, and in hindsight, it never really could've been anyone else.

"Descole," Luke growled through clenched teeth.

Descole gave him a smile. "Why hello, Luke. Pleasure seeing you again."

"Can't say the same for you," Luke said, still glaring daggers.

"Well, don't we have a smart mouth?" Descole said with a cold smile.

"Well, don't we like to point out the obvious?" Luke shot back.

Descole's smile became amused in an I'm-going-to-enjoy-your-pain kind of way. He put his hand under Like's chin and forced him to look into his eyes.

"Don't worry, we have ways of making you more… _agreeable._"

"Take your best shot," Luke dared him.

Descole snapped his fingers and the two goons who had _escorted_ him there grabbed his arms.

"H-hey!" Luke yelled. "Let me go!" He started to struggle against them, but he was no match for two adults who frankly looked like they were on steroids.

He was pushed into a section of the room that was closed off by glass about a foot thick.

He tried to turn around and get out the door before they closed it, but it slammed in his face.

He pounded on the glass, knowing it wouldn't do anything but not wanting to give in and just stand there.

"What's going on?" he demanded.

"Oh, you will find out soon enough, boy," Descole answered venomously.

Luke heard the sound of metal grinding against metal and looked up to see air vents opening above his head.

The warning tape did no favors for his nerves.

Then, pain ignited in him. It felt like his blood was on fire and his nerves were being crushed. His legs gave out and he sank to the floor, hands gripping his head in a futile attempt to block out the pain.

Every bone in his body turned to jello, and he thought the sectioned off part of the room became brighter, but that might have just been the pain messing with his eyes.

He probably screamed, but he could only hear something that sounded like static on the radio. The rational part of his mind told him his eardrums were probably damaged, but that part was ignored by the overwhelming pain receptors and he found it harder and harder to think straight.

He closed his eyes and tried to will himself to black out. Anything to stop the pain. It worked, but not completely.

Luke felt himself slip into darkness, but the pain only dulled. It became a constant throbbing, but it was better than the burning he felt before.

Then, the throbbing was replaced with a soreness. Luke opened his eyes a crack and saw the glass door opening. He looked up and the vents were sealed again.

When he saw the goons coming in, he tried to push himself up and make an escape, but as soon as he moved his arms an inch, the burning was back, and he cried out in pain, arms falling limp once more.

Luke felt himself being lifted off the ground, but he resigned to keeping his eyes closed and trying to fall back into the darkness. Unfortunately, it didn't work this time.

He felt a hand on the side of his face, and heard a quiet "He's passed the test. Take him to the car and restrain him," through his damaged ear drums.

Before he knew it, he was laying on cold metal with rope around his wrists and ankles, and duct tape on his mouth.

"Wake up, this will be your last chance to see your beloved Professor," he heard a voice say. He opened his eyes and almost hit his head on the camera in front of his face while sitting up.

* * *

><p><strong>Not my longest chap for sure, but eventful, right?<strong>

**I really didn't want to retype the video, because there wasn't much I could add to keep it interesting and not just a copy-and-paste.**

**Lastly, next chap will probably be the last, then we'll get into the *drumroll* SEQUEL! "No Raven Left Behind"**

**Hope you've enjoyed so far! I sure have.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Please don't kill me for being late!**

**Last chapter guys! I will miss this... Until I post the sequel, that is. I'll be sure to make an announcement on this story so all my lovely followers can be alerted to ****_le debut de "No Raven Left Behind"_****!**

**Becca: Just because you have a French test next week doesn't mean you should keep saying random phrases in French.**

**Me: ****_Vas-t'en_****! (Get lost!) You aren't even IN the Professor Layton fandom!**

**Becca: Well... *hands me paper* Remember the 'redhead girl' who got uncloaked when The Order found the base of the Black Ravens?**

**Me: Wha-? I DIDN'T WRITE THIS! **

**Becca: I'm officially a Professor Layton OC!**

**Me: BECCA! *chases after her as she laughs and runs away***

* * *

><p>There were no words to describe the Professor's feelings. The only thing that kept him from completely falling apart was that he had to reassure everyone who was depending on him.<p>

However, when he was finally alone after a long day of gathering up all the children taken hostage by The Order and finding a decent place to sleep-he settled for a room in a former hotel of Misthallery-he collapsed on the bed.

He didn't dare close his eyes, though, for fear of the images that had been plaguing his mind every time he blinked throughout the day.

Luke with scared eyes and tape across his mouth.

Luke being thrown in a tiny cell and experimented on by Descole's mad scientists.

Luke being tortured.

Luke being killed.

Though, the worst images were the ones of Luke smiling after they had just solved a case, or trying to eat Flora's cooking without grimacing, or the times when he would recite one of the many 'Rules of Being a Gentleman' that they had complied together over the years.

Knowing that Luke might never tell Flora about how '_a gentleman is always on time'_ again broke the Professor's heart.

The door creaked open.

"Professor?"

The Professor quickly straightened up and looked at the door to find Crow standing awkwardly, shifting from side to side and clutching a file.

"Crow, come in," he said, beckoning Crow forward.

Crow stayed where he was.

He held up the file in his hands and softly said, "We looked through The Order's files and found out where our parents are. You might want to check this out."

* * *

><p>The walk was torture. Crow trudged through the dirt on the side of the road next to the Professor. All the children of Misthallery followed behind them.<p>

"How much further?" Crow asked, not for the first time.

"Just a bit more, I believe," Emmy answered.

Finally, they reached a fork in the road.

More than one person groaned when they saw the forest that the road would take them through.

"Come on!" Emmy encouraged. "Just a quick jog through the forest and we'll be there!"

"Easy for you to say. Not all of us are martial arts masters," someone mumbled.

"What was that?" Emmy turned around.

"Let's just get going," Crow sighed, not looking forward to stumbling through the dark and tripping over roots.

The Professor nodded. "Crow is right. The sooner we get going, the sooner we reach our destination."

Crow allowed himself a smug smile at the 'Crow is right' part. _"Oh, wipe that stupid look off your face,"_ he imagined Luke saying if he were here.

He pulled his hat down and took a deep breath before entering the forest.

"Hey," a timid voice said as Arianna jogged up beside him.

"Hey."

"... How are you?"

"Fine."

"You're a terrible liar, you know."

Crow exhaled through his nose. "I'm a nervous wreck. What did you expect?"

Arianna looked away from him and almost tripped over a fallen log. Crow felt bad immediately.

"I'm sorry ... It's just ... Luke's-well, you know. ... And seeing our parents ..."

"I understand," she said quietly, and Crow could see the sadness in her eyes when he mentioned Luke.

"Hey, I ... I'm sorry. I shouldn't be complaining about this, especially to you. I know you two were ..."

Arianna turned scarlet. "You-you knew?"

Crow chuckled and replied, "Who didn't? You two were obviously mad for each other."

"It was that obvious?" she asked, trying to hide her face in her hair.

Crow shrugged. "Maybe I'm just good at reading people. I have known you two for quite a while now."

Arianna gave him a sly smile through her hair. "Like how everyone can tell you like Wren since we've known you two so long?" she asked.

"Wha-Why would you be under the impression ... I do not!" Crow spluttered out, turning red himself.

"Oh, look," she said innocently. "We're here."

And indeed they were. Crow found himself on the edge of the forest, looking at a seemingly perfect replica of Misthallery.

The Professor came up next to him. "Well, I suppose we should-"

Crow never found out what they 'should' have done, because before the Professor could finish, a voice interrupted him.

"Crow?"

Crow let out an audible gasp when he laid eyes on the woman that spoke. "Mom?"

He found himself wrapped in her embrace. "Oh, Crow, I was so worried! I thought I'd never see you again!"

"Mom ..." he repeated, as if in a trance. He couldn't believe it ... After all these years, his mother was right in front of him.

He snapped out of his trance and returned his mother's hug. "Mom!"

* * *

><p>The worst part was facing Clark and Brenda. Seeing their eyes light up in hope at all the children reunited with their parents, then fading as the Professor came up to them with a grim expression-it killed the Professor inside.<p>

After all the parents and children had been reunited, he slipped away from the exchanges of stories, detailing the confinement and treatment of the children and adults.

The Professor sighed, and pulled his hat over his eyes.

"What? Is it ungentlemanly to cry in front of people who care and are worried about you?" a voice asked from behind him.

"Crow?"

"You're getting sloppy, then. This is the second time today I've caught you having a little pity-party."

The Professor was surprised to find that Crow's eyes were narrowed.

"You know, it's okay to cry. Plenty of other people are. However, pretending to have no emotions ... There are people who worried about you when you do that."

The Professor allowed a small smile to grace his lips. "I suppose that's true."

But Crow wasn't done yet. "You should just stop trying to protect your stupid pride so we can go and find Luke already. I don't know about you, but I don't think keeping people from seeing you cry is a good excuse to keep Luke waiting any longer then he has to."

"... Well, when you put it like that, it's quite hard to ... Wait, 'we'? You said, 'so we can go find Luke.'"

"Yeah. I'm coming. Got a problem with that?"

"It's dangerous. You shouldn't-"

"Don't talk to me about 'dangerous!'" Crow shouted suddenly. "I'm going to save my friend whether you like it or not, and that's that!"

"... I never thought I'd be hearing the voice of reason from a child."

Crow snorted. "Well get used to it, because you're not getting rid of me anytime soon until we find Luke."

"I suppose you're right."

Crow grinned smugly. "So, where should we start?"


	13. Chapter 13

Sorry I haven't posted the sequel yet, and I know I've told a couple of people it would be out really soon, but school is getting really stressful for me right now (it's my first year in this specialized program for advanced kids, so I'm not quite used to the workload and it's not getting any better now that we're near the end of the year) so I think I'm going to hold off on the sequel until summer, but I promise I won't give up on this story. Hope you guys can forgive me.


End file.
